Women who seek leadership face unique obstacles such as unconscious bias, skewed workplace cultures and a lack of supportive mentors. Investing in coaching provides the perspective, knowledge, skills and support necessary to overcome these barriers.
When women rise to the top, they are often greeted by their own Imposter Voice, a self-defeating inner critic that encourages them to play small and shy away from visibility and risk.
1. Self-Awareness
Women often find it challenging to understand and assess their own strengths and weaknesses. During coaching sessions, they are given the opportunity to reflect on their decisions and interactions with others. This practice allows them to spot patterns that may be limiting their effectiveness. Then they can decide to be more of what positively impacts themselves and their teams, and less of what hinders their progress.
Increasing self-awareness is particularly important for women in leadership who may face challenges that are unique to their gender or race. For example, research has shown that women are more likely to experience imposter syndrome in leadership roles — an internal feeling of intellectual or professional inadequacy that causes anxiety and fear that they will be found out as a fraud. Coaches who are familiar with the challenges faced by women in leadership can help them identify and dismantle limiting beliefs, replacing them with more empowering narratives of success.
Additionally, many women who are seeking leadership struggle to prioritize the multitude of activities that require their attention. Coaching sessions allow them to discuss their goals and priorities with a trusted partner, providing them with tools and strategies that will enable them to manage their workload more effectively.
A good coach also helps women cultivate an awareness of how their behaviors impact their teams and the larger organization. They teach their clients to solicit concrete feedback that is supportive and honest, and they encourage them to ask for the support they need. They also help them recognize when they are taking on too much or responding to stress in unhealthy ways. They can then reframe their challenges into opportunities to build a stronger, more inclusive culture.
2. Goal Setting
Women often find themselves in the position where they have a clear vision for their leadership and professional growth, but they struggle to translate that vision into concrete goals that are actionable. A coach can help women understand how to set goals that are both ambitious and realistic, while also ensuring that their short term goals are meaningful and achievable.
The process of coaching allows high-potential female leaders to gain the confidence they need to speak up and seek out opportunities to influence business decisions. Too many women hold themselves back from these conversations, believing that they don’t have all the information or answers to potential questions. While this may be true at times, it can limit a woman’s visibility and credibility as a leader and ultimately prevent her from being considered for higher levels of responsibility.
In addition to gaining clarity around their leadership vision, women leaders in the early stages of their coaching journey can benefit from learning how to prioritize and manage their time. This is a common challenge for women who are seeking to balance career and family responsibilities while progressing in their careers. A coach can provide a safe space to explore these challenges and support a woman in developing practical tools for self-empowerment that will allow her to be more effective as a leader.
In a society where women are often told to be less aggressive and smile more, it is easy for women to internalize the message that they will not earn their place in leadership unless they “work twice as hard.” As a result, many women believe that they are responsible for their lack of success, rather than recognizing that unconscious bias in organizations contributes to the difficulty women have in achieving their leadership dreams.
3. Accountability
While many women understandably rely on mentors for valuable insight into business cultures and corporate norms, coaches help them to explore the more interpersonal aspects of leadership development. This includes empowering women to build a personal brand that is authentic to them, including their natural feminine leadership style and executive mindset. In addition, coaching helps women learn to manage challenging workplace dynamics, including unconscious bias and office politics.
One of the most important skills for any leader to have is a healthy sense of accountability. However, it’s a skill that can be hard for many women to master, especially as they seek promotion and a higher level of influence. Too often, women who are working to advance their careers feel that they must be perfect in every way, which can lead to a feeling of self-criticism and exhaustion. This can be a major challenge for women who also have families to care for and professional aspirations to fulfill.
Additionally, women who seek leadership roles are often encouraged to play a more masculine game than they naturally would, which can cause them to have trouble navigating the expectations of their peers and executive sponsors. As a result, they may shy away from opportunities to influence key decisions in favor of taking a backseat and waiting until they have the right answers for everyone involved.
This type of behavior can have serious consequences for a woman’s career, especially in highly competitive environments where projecting confidence and mobilizing individuals toward a shared objective are paramount to success. Additionally, playing the game in this manner can lead to a reputation as a “Debbie Downer” or other negative stereotype, which is the exact opposite of the leadership style desired in most powerhouse companies. If you’re interested in developing your leadership skills and navigating the challenges women face in the workplace, get more information about Shoshanna Raven, a coach who specializes in empowering women to reach their full potential.
4. Vision
Women excel at intuiting long-term consequences of short-term decisions, but some also find it difficult to envision their own future in the leadership role they aspire to. In addition, when women become adamant about cautioning colleagues about potential downsides to their plans, they run the risk of being labeled “Negative Nelly” or “Debbie Downer.” The ability to clearly articulate a vision and strategic direction is essential for success in leadership roles. Coaching helps women develop this skill while allowing them to remain confident and positive as they move forward.
Various factors can derail a woman’s path to leadership, including unconscious bias, cultural norms that undervalue her strengths and internal voices of self-doubt that make her fear she is a fraud. These dynamics, coupled with high-stress demands of family life and a culture that promotes work-aholic attitudes, can leave the most talented women feeling overwhelmed. Ultimately, they may decide the game is rigged and pass on the opportunity to advance into management positions at their current organizations.
Many women who seek to lead do not have senior female mentors from which they can learn. They may not have access to a leadership development program within their organization that provides the support they need to navigate challenging workplace situations and develop critical skills. This is why coaching programs are becoming so popular for organizations looking to invest in the development of their female talent.
In addition, coaching is also beneficial for senior female leaders who are unsure what their next step should be. These individuals are often highly accomplished and have achieved a great deal of success in their careers, but feel that they could benefit from a career roadmap that will help them avoid pitfalls and accelerate their leadership journey to the next level.
5. Support
As women seek to rise into leadership roles, they often feel that their efforts to get there are not appreciated. The demands of the role, rocky collaborations and minimal appreciation for their contributions can lead them to question whether they really have what it takes. This underlying doubt can make it difficult to maintain the energy levels needed to continue seeking new leadership opportunities.
Coaching can be an opportunity to shatter limiting beliefs that are holding them back. A coach can help a woman find her own voice and authentic leadership style while helping her build confidence levels to allow her to speak up more often.
In addition, a coaching relationship can also be an important source of support in times of conflict or frustration at work. The ability to communicate clearly, empathize with others and provide constructive feedback are critical skills for successful leaders, regardless of gender. A skilled coach can help a woman to develop these skills to navigate the more challenging workplace dynamics that are common for females seeking to reach higher ranks.
Women who have reached leadership roles need to be able to connect their own ideas and insights with those of other people in the organization, so they can bring fresh perspectives to problem solving, innovation and decision making. Getting women to believe that their ideas are as valuable as those of men can be an uphill battle in many organizations. A good coaching partnership can help a woman to hone her communication skills and overcome the tendency to compare herself to men when communicating her ideas.
It is essential that companies recognize the barriers to women’s advancement in leadership and take steps to address these. This can include implementing formal processes to ensure that leadership tasks are evenly distributed across the business, and addressing the cultural issues that can discourage women from believing they have the leadership potential to be promoted.
